T.A. Solberg has created its Trig’s stores and other businesses to serve their communities

in a personal and committed way.

The Northwoods of Wisconsin may seem like a remote area to many, but to those who live in and visit the region, it is known for its beautiful scenery, diverse wildlife and range of outdoor activities, such as fishing, hiking, camping, canoeing, biking, snowmobiling and skiing. The area has more than 3,200 lakes, streams and rivers, as well as more than 500,000 acres of public forests, and exploring all of that can make a person hungry. Luckily, the region is home to T.A. Solberg Co. Inc. and its brand of Trig’s grocery stores and associated businesses.

TOPS Friendly Markets has served the Northeast for generations with supermarkets centered around customer service.

By Chris Petersen

For generations, TOPS Friendly Markets has been the local favorite throughout upstate New York and the surrounding area, and chairman and CEO Frank Curci says the company is committed to holding onto that position for many years to come. “As a New York state-owned and operated company, our vision is to be your friendly neighborhood store that has what you want while saving you time and money,” Curci says.

Keeping the promises it makes to its customers each and every day is paramount for TOPS and crucial for its continued success, and that has been the status quo for the company ever since before the first modern TOPS supermarket opened in 1962 in Niagara Falls, N.Y. The company’s roots date back even further, to the early 1920s when Ferrante Castellani moved his family to Niagara Falls from a small village in Italy. In Niagara Falls, Castellani opened his first grocery store, and his sons Armand and Alfred soon opened two more under the same name of Great Bear Market.

The retail and food service industries are prone to one of the highest turnover rates in any industry. It could be a combination of seasonal employees, a young workforce that is still in school and historically lower wages.

But Nittany MinitMart, a chain of 26 convenience stores in central Pennsylvania, believes that one of the keys to employee retention is boosting morale through encouragement, recognition and rewards.

Brother’s Food Mart has won rave reviews for its famous fried chicken.

By Alan Dorich

People do not normally think of convenience stores as places where they can get top-quality cuisine, but Brother’s Food Mart has proved them wrong. In fact, CEO Imad "Eddie" Hamdan says the chain’s fried chicken has become a rite of passage for people when they come to New Orleans.

“If you go to Miami, and [you meet] somebody who has been to Louisiana, they’re going to know about Brother’s,” he says. “When people come to New Orleans, they’re going to try Brother’s chicken. It’s just something that you have to do.”

Based in Harvey, La., Brother’s Food Mart operates several locations in New Orleans and other cities in its home state. Hamdan notes that the company opened its first location in 1991 before moving three years later to a larger spot across the street that had been owned by its competition.

The hard work of Convenient Food Marts’ franchisees allows the company to continue to thrive.

By Alan Dorich, Knighthouse Media

For more than four decades, Convenient Food Marts of PA Inc. has thrived, thanks to its experienced management staff. “Many of the employees have been with the company nearly 40 years,” President Christopher Gilchrist says.

Its franchisees also enable the firm to prosper. “Our franchisees work very hard, and they are critical to the success of our business,” he says. “They run their stores right.”

Mario Spina knows that many people have preconceived notions about the quality of the food available in gas station convenience stores. “The biggest thing we battle is getting the perception of gas station food out of people’s minds when they come to our locations,” says Spina, CEO of the Warrenville, Ill.-based PRIDE Stores. “We want people to look past the fact that our food is made in a gas station.”

The company in recent years renovated its locations in the Chicago-area market to make them more appealing to guests, and added three foodservice concepts: Urban Counter, The PRIDE Café and Taco Urbano. “We try to do things differently than most gas station convenience stores in this market,” Spina says. “We try to carry name brands along with a heavy focus on fresh, high-quality food at an affordable price.”